Criminalistics
An Introduction to
Forensic Science
About the Author:
Dr. Saferstein
Served 21 years as Chief Forensic
Scientist for the NJ State Police Lab.
Currently a professor at Widener Univ. in
Delaware
Teaches courses on expert witnesses.
Why do we look to science for
assistance in our legal system?
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Increasing Crime Rates
New or Changed Laws
New Crimes
New Weapons (*see next slide)
Response to Public Concerns
Response to Law Enforcement Concerns
New Weapons?
Applying Science to Law
Applying science to the Criminal Justice
System depends on a scientist’s ability to
supply accurate & objective information
that reflects the events that have occurred
at a crime.
Forensic Science defined:
Forensic Science (or Criminalistics) is the
use of science & technology to enforce
civil & criminal laws.
It is vague & hard to define b/c it includes
so many other areas of science.
Civil vs. Criminal Law
CIVIL LAW
CRIMINAL LAW
 filed by a private party.
o a corporation
o an individual person
 filed by the government
 Penalty: a guilty defendant is
punished by
 Penalty: a guilty defendant
o incarceration (in jail/prison)
pays the plaintiff for losses
o fine paid to the gov’t
caused by their actions.
o execution (death penalty)
o no incarceration
 Crimes are divided into 2 classes:
o misdemeanors - less than 1
year incarceration
o felonies - sentence of 1+ year
History & Development
of Forensic Science
When in Rome…
“Forensic” comes from the Latin word
“forensis” meaning forum.
 During the time of the Romans, a
criminal charge meant presenting the
case before the public.
 Both the person accused of the crime
& the accuser would give speeches
based on their side of the story.
 The individual with the best
argumentation would determine the
outcome of the case.

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Sci-fi author in late 1800’s

Popularized scientific crime-detection
methods through his fictional character
‘Sherlock Holmes’.
Mathieu Orfila
(1787-1853)

“Father of Toxicology”

Wrote about the detection of poisons
& their effects on animals.
Alphonse Bertillon
(1853-1914)


“Father of Anthropometry”
Developed a system to distinguish one
individual person from another based on
certain body measurements.
Anthropometry
Francis Galton
(1822-1911)

“Father of Fingerprinting”

Developed fingerprinting as a way to
uniquely identify individuals.
Leone Lattes
(1887-1954)

“Father of Bloodstain Identification”

He developed a procedure for
determining the blood type (A, B, AB, or O)
of a dried blood stain.
Calvin Goddard
(1891-1955)


“Father of Ballistics”
Developed the technique to examine
bullets, using a comparison
microscope, to determine whether or
not a particular gun fired the bullets.
Albert Osborn
(1858-1946)

“Father of Document Examination”

His work led to the acceptance of
documents as scientific evidence by
the courts.
Walter McCrone
(1916-2002)

“Father of Microscopic Forensics”

He developed & applied his
microscope techniques to examine
evidence in countless court cases.
Hans Gross
(1847-1915)

“Father of Forensic Publications”

Wrote the book on applying all the
different science disciplines to the field
of criminal investigation.
Edmond Locard
(1877-1966)
• “Father of the Crime Lab”
• In 1910, he started the 1st crime lab in an attic of
a police station.
• With few tools, he quickly became known worldwide to forensic scientists & criminal
investigators & eventually founded the Institute
of Criminalistics in France.
• His most important contribution was the
“Locard’s Exchange Principle”
Locard’s Exchange Principle
• “Every Contact Leaves a Trace.”
• He believed that every criminal can be
connected to a crime by particles carried
from the crime scene.
• When a criminal comes in contact with an
object or person, a cross-transfer of
evidence occurs.
J. Edgar Hoover

“Father of the FBI” - Director of Federal Bureau of
Investigation during the 1930’s

Hoover's leadership spanned 48 yrs & 8 presidential
administrations. His reign covered Prohibition, the
Great Depression, WWII, the Korean War, the Cold
War, & the Vietnam War.

He organized a national laboratory to offer forensic
services to all law enforcement agencies in the U.S.

VERY CONTROVERSIAL
– He exceeded & abused his authority with unjustified
investigations & illegal wiretaps based on political beliefs
rather than suspected criminal activity
– FBI directors are now limited to 10-year terms
Applications of Forensic Science
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Identification of Criminals or Victims
Solving Mysteries
 Past crimes (unsolved or wrongfully
convicted)
 Cause, Location, Time of Death
 Paternity cases
Cyber crimes
Corporate Crimes (Enron)
Voice Analysis
Applications of Forensic Science
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
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Application of DNA as evidence
Prevention vs. Reaction
Catastrophes & Wars
 ID remains of victims (either civilian or
soldiers)
 ex. Holocaust or Katrina
Military & International Forensics
 Terrorism
 The search for WMD’s
 stockpiled or stored weapons from past wars
Munitions
When the Army unearthed more
than a 1,000 mortar rounds from
a WW2 training site, they
enlisted a Forensic Science Lab
to determine which were live
munitions & which were
The Trial of the Century
• O.J. Simpson was a NFL football legend.
• He is now famous for having been tried for
the murder of ex-wife Nicole Brown
Simpson & her friend Ronald Goldman in
1994.
• He was acquitted in criminal court after a
lengthy, highly publicized trial.
What went wrong?
• 1st on the scene, police found evidence of blood
& entered the Simpson home without a search
warrant, an action permissible b/c the situation
was an emergency.
• HOWEVER, the police collected a pair of bloodstained gloves during their search.
• Collection of evidence without proper warrants
became the key argument used by Simpson’s
legal team & ultimately led to his acquital.
What was learned?
• If forensic evidence is to be admissible in
court, the highest professional standards
must be used at the crime scene!
• He was found liable for their deaths in civil
court, but has yet to pay the $33.5 million
judgment.
THE BODY FARM
• PRIMARY GOAL: To understand the processes
& timetable of postmortem decay, primarily to
improve determining the "time since death" in
murder cases.
• The Body Farm is a simulation of various crime
scenes using real human bodies.
• Started in 1970-80’s to study Forensic
Anthropology (the study of human decomposition
after death).
THE BODY FARM
• Used by Law Enforcement, Medical Examiners,
Entomologists, Cadaver Dogs, Anthropologists &
FBI for Crime Scene Training.
• The BF uses unclaimed cadavers & volunteers
(who donate their body to science after death)
• Only 2 Facilities in the U.S.
– Univ. of Tennessee (original)
– Western Carolina University
– Texas State University - local residents opposed it
Doorway to death, the main gate of the Anthropology
Research Facility—the “Body Farm”—consists of a
wooden privacy fence inside a chain-link fence
that’s topped with razor wire.
Security is a high priority. Fences, padlocks,
video surveillance cameras, & police patrols
safeguard the world’s only humandecomposition research facility.
One research study examined the effects of
the elevated temperatures—and limited
insect access—to which a body in a car
would be subjected.
Corpse 1-81 was an elderly white male; he
became part of a pioneering study of insect
activity in human corpses.
Closeup of a recent research subject. After only a few weeks in
the Tennessee summer, the skull is completely bare & many
vertebrae are exposed. The rib cage & pelvis are covered
with dried, leathery skin, but the soft tissues beneath are
gone, consumed by insects & bacteria.
Close-up of a human femur & hip bone,
containing an artificial hip implant. Such
orthopedic devices can help identify an
unknown crime victim.
An aerial view of the Body Farm, taken from Patricia
Cornwell’s helicopter. The large wooden tripods are
used for hoisting & weighing bodies as part of a
research study of weight loss during
decomposition.
A jaw from a research subject held by the
founder of the Body Farm.
Types of Research
How does the decomp rate compare in:
– sunshine vs shade?
– In cool weather vs hot weather?
– In a shallow grave vs on the ground?
– In water?
– Inside a car?
– What effect do other variables have—
humidity, insect activity, clothing, body weight,
and so on?
Why is TSD so important?
• 1st question at most murder scenes: "How
long has this person been dead?“
• It's crucial to know when the crime was
committed.
– it can help narrow the search for a suspect or
– it can help rule out potential suspects who
had alibis at the time the victim was killed.